At least 35 new teachers have been added to the education field, according to Chief Education Officer Melena Fontaine.
Before the new school year began on Monday, the new teachers were given extra training on performance as well as their responsibilities in the classroom.
“We also brought in new teachers; we have about thirty-five of them coming in,” Fontaine said. “We have looked at their jobs, what are their rights and responsibilities as teachers. We introduced them to the policies that we expect them to adhere to our expectations in terms of their performance because we are hoping that at the end of the year when the principal conducts an appraisal for them, at least they would be in what we call the meet expectations range.”
She made it clear that the new teachers will be faced with many challenges.
“We recognize that because they are new, they will have challenges, but it’s the job of the principal to give them the support that they need so that they could meet those challenges and so something about it,” she stated.
Fontaine said a four-day workshop was held at the Dominica Grammar School a week before the new school year opened to further prepare teachers.
“We started on Tuesday with an induction for new principals,” she said. “But besides that there are things we want them to know from the very beginning, so that as they go along planning and working to put their schools in a state of readiness, they are aware of the legislation, policies, procedures that should be guiding what it is they are doing at schools.”
She mentioned that the training sessions were organized for different groups of teachers during the workshop.
“Over the past two to three years we have been working on new curriculum for the secondary schools for forms one to three,” Fontaine noted. “So we have been introducing all heads of department and senior teachers to the curriculum so that they make it part of their planning, that when they go back to school they share it with the other teachers their department.”
She stated further that teachers were also were trained in Music, Spanish, French, Health and Family Life Education.
Great Job Mrs Fountaine! You are a capable, loving and caring teacher. Blessings to you as you give direction to the Department of Education in Dominica.
Fontaine
A good start.
However, the current administration could benefit from a communications workshop as most of you fail so very badly in that respect.
Stop embarrassing us.
Am very disappointed in how the whole education system is being managed. Children teaching children, no wonder there is no respect towards teachers in the classroom today.
Mrs Fountaine,
Why is that teachers who are trained take so long to get appointed eh. I mean come on man. After 4 years and more teachers are not appointed that is madness.
that government there taking people from d streets that just finish high school n cant get job n place them to teach people children i know of a teacher that has been teaching for some time n d girl at her home because they have no where to put her n the girl going college, teachers college as a matter a fact n allu mean to tell me all choose people that have no experience over her… everything in dominica is really pull string or g-string……. smh……. time for that government to come out there……
dear all dominicans, my name is chasley severin , and i want tell you abot my self , i have had a rough adjustment and transition to moving to dominica three years ago, i have under gone a total transformation , i must apoligies to my country , in how i must have looked , ,i was going through a tough time , but through the lords help and some people i have turned my life back to who i use to be which is an educated well mannered polite and careing man that beleves in the lord jesus christ, and the father god almight,, i am please asking dominica to please give me a chance to feed and support my self, i need a job, i am a hard working man and just want to work, and support myself, idont need any one call my job and tell them about some minnier ensident to make me loose my job, i have no one here for me nd i am on my on ,please who ever reads this please help me , i am a dominican too, and just want to provide for myslef, i have no friends no women no kids all alone here and at least i should have a little job ,
I agree with you and this is very unfair. I know it is said that obtaining a teaching job is based on o levels. However, when you are in the service you need to have a college degree to be appointed.
Guess you will have to hire that jobless-used-to-be-teacher to tutor you in English because I had to read and reread your post in order to understand what you are trying to say. If the teacher was performing as was expected, she would still be employed. Over 90% of young folks who teach in Dominica started right from high school . And, it’s been happening for years. It’s only recently they started training them further before they are placed in classrooms. So, what’s your problem? Tell her go look for job elsewhere….Astaphans hiring. Stop relying on teaching job
I remember as a child some of my primary school teachers did not attend secondary school. Some of my high school teachers had just finished secondary school.
As a matter of fact, when I passed my A-Levels, I was offered a job as a high school math teacher.
What are the current minimum requirements to be a teacher in Dominica? Just curious.
From what I heard 5 subjects including maths and english